Tokens
by LusciniaeCantus
Summary: A series of oneshots documenting Tezuka and Fuji's relationship focusing on the small gifts they pass onto each other. eventual TezukaFuji. [II. higuma]
1. origami cranes

**Tokens**

_written by: lusciniaecantus_

_Tezuka/Fuji_

**A/N:** This won't be so much a chaptered series as a collection of one-shots that can be read individually or as a whole. The purpose is to document Tezuka and Fuji's relationship with small tokens that they give each other. Other friendship relationships may also be explored. And this will most likely not follow a linear timeline.

Secondly, thanks to reviewers for my first one-shot! I really appreciate the feedback. Enjoy!

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**origami cranes**_  
(G)_

It was a bittersweet day as the former regulars of the Seigaku Tennis Club gathered at the International Airport in Tokyo. The vivid sunshine washing the floors and rooms with light reflected suspiciously brightly on the eyes of some present, although they tried furiously to hide it. Inui, the former Golden Pair, Momoshiro, Takashi, Kaidoh and the team brat were all present along with Ryuzaki to see two of their own off into the world beyond.

Tezuka had captured the attention of renowned universities not only in Japan, but in Europe and America as well and he'd decided at last on a prestigious tennis school located in Western Germany. No one on his team doubted that he'd become a pro; tennis was Tezuka's life, his one true passion. Meanwhile, the resident tensai, Fuji Shuusuke had surprised everyone when he announced, with complete nonchalance, that he'd be leaving for Australia to study nature photography. All of the other seniors had opted to stay in Japan to continue their studies, but the loss of the two most brilliant minds within their circle was a blow that none of them were truly prepared for. One perhaps, but not two, though looking back, they really shouldn't have been all that surprised. Neither Tezuka nor Fuji were people who'd be content staying confined to one place where their immense potentials could not be fulfilled.

Oishi, ever playing the maternal role, had made sure Tezuka left him his contact information in Germany and Fuji had cheerfully given his up when Eiji asked. Oishi fully planned to keep up contact within the old team, even if it took some not-so-subtle threats of Inui's fearful vegetable juice to get some of the more stubborn ones to comply. Yet, for the two seemingly most contradictory, and at the same time most compatible, members, it was doubtful if their paths would ever cross again as they headed off to opposite ends of the world to chase their own dreams and ambitions.

Tezuka was never one to hold on to sentimentality, always looking and striving towards the future. The older half of the Golden Pair did not believe for an instant that Tezuka would chase after old memories. Fuji had always reminded Oishi of the sea—the deceptively calm exterior belying an infinitely deep mind, and like the sea, ever-changing even as he always remained the same. It was impossible to truly grasp Fuji, only to look on as he continually shifted and slipped away like the water. Which was exactly why Tezuka would never try. Their buchou did not believe in pursuing lost causes.

--

"We'll miss you, Tezuka," Takashi told his old captain sincerely as the group stood just outside the Tezuka's boarding gate. Takashi had, as he'd promised, stopped tennis in high school and devoted all his energy into sushi-making, but he was still the same quiet boy Tezuka knew in the Seigaku Tennis Club.

"As will I," the stoic boy responded, taking in the faces of his teammates, and the closest friends he'd ever had.

"Don't forget us, nya!" Eiji teased with a wink. High school had not changed the energetic youth at all, and his Japanese Lit. teachers were always driven to exasperation with his nonsensical addendums to classic literature readings.

"See you at the Wimbledon, buchou." Ryoma's typical cocksure remark incited a laugh. Tezuka regarded the young tennis genius seriously for a moment and then inclined his head ever so slightly. The message was clear. _Make it there and I will be waiting._

"Take care of yourself, Tezuka."

Tezuka's gaze shifted to the vice-captain that had been with him since the very first day. "Aa," he replied. "You too, minna. Don't let your guards down."

Another collective chuckle. "Some things never change," Inui remarked, his lips curling in an amused smile. The others voiced their agreements.

"Attention all passengers on Flight 867 leaving for Berlin, Germany at 1:30pm, your plane is beginning to board. Please head to the boarding gate immediately."

They all looked up to where the intercom had just announced Tezuka's flight.

"Well, that's my flight." Tezuka hoisted his bag more firmly onto his shoulders and began to turn away when Fuji stepped up and laid his hand gently on the other boy's elbow, making him stopped and look at the fair-haired boy expectantly.

"Saaa, Tezuka, this is for you." A plain, light blue box tied with a single gold string was presented to him, the familiar smile just as cheerful as ever on Fuji's delicate face. He accepted the present gracefully.

"Arigatou."

The smile widened infinitesimally. "Ne, just don't open it until you're on the airplane ok?"

"Aa," he nodded, long used to Fuji's little eccentricies. Indeed, he would've been truly surprised if the honey-haired boy hadn't made some kind of random odd request to go along with his final farewell token. "I won't."

Fuji hummed his satisfaction and stepped back beside his own luggage. The others moved around him to wish their buchou a final good-bye and good luck before Tezuka turned again to board. "Sayonara, minna."

A chorus of "Sayonara buchou" sounded back, except the blue-eyed prodigy's lips never moved and, as Tezuka looked out of the corner of his eyes, the closed-mouth smile on Fuji's blurry face never wavered once. With one final nod, the former captain of Seigaku headed off into the terminal.

--

"Ne, Fuji, your plane leaves soon too," Eiji reminded his best friend as Tezuka disappeared from sight. "Shouldn't you get going too?"

"Mm, you're right Eiji." But the fair-haired boy made no move to follow through on Eiji's advice.

"Fuji?"

The prodigy turned his head towards Oishi at the other's inquisitive voice. "It's ok if you guys leave now," he said. "I'll be fine. My boarding gate is down the hall."

Eiji jumped in again, his face scrunched up. "But Fujiii!"

"Ne, Eiji, didn't you say you didn't want to miss the special Jellybeans' live performance on TV today?"

The bouncing redhead froze, suddenly remembering the show that he'd been so excited about for the past month. "Nyaa, you're right!" Eiji glanced at Fuji, a torn look on his face. There was an awkward silence as he debated over his best friend and his idols.

A chuckle escaped Fuji's lips as he saw his hyperactive friend freeze. "Don't worry about it, Eiji. I can make it down the hall by myself." He turned to the others, his closed eyes somehow giving the impression that he was taking them all in nonetheless. "You too, minna. I'll just go board the plane."

"But…"

Seeing the way Eiji was still uncertain, Fuji offered a compromise and a way out. "I'll call you as soon as I reach Sydney, ok Eiji?"

The redhead bit his lip lightly as he considered this, his eyes still hesitant. "Promise?"

"Hai. I promise," Fuji assured him soothingly. "Now go, I wouldn't want you to miss your show for me."

Oishi looked from the smiling prodigy to his doubles partner who had started bouncing again from nervousness. "Well, if you're sure…"

"I'm sure."

The older teen sighed. There was no arguing with Fuji. "Very well. Take care of yourself, Fuji."

"Mm, arigtaou. I will."

"Alright, let's go everyone!"

The rest of the team nodded, and they each gave Fuji a final handshake or pat and said their goodbyes. He smiled at each of them, nodding his thanks and murmured a goodbye. Then, they reluctantly parted and started heading towards the exit.

Fuji stood there waving at them, his figure silhouetted against the afternoon sun shining brightly through the large glass windows, only the tip of his smile visible. Only when the team disappeared past the security doors did he let his hand fall to his side, the faintest crease appearing between his brows as his smile faded for this first time since that morning and he turned his head to look back out the window at the planes resting outside. Overhead, he heard his own boarding call. ("Attention all passengers on Flight 342 leaving for Sydney, Australia at 2pm, your plane is now beginning to board. Please head to the gate immediately.")

--

Tezuka let out a small sigh as he took his seat near the window on the airplane. He was one of the first to board and therefore, had stored his carry-on luggage in the overhead compartment without any problems. As he sat there waiting for the takeoff, his gaze rested on the present box sitting on his lap. Fuji hadn't reacted when he broke the news to the team that he was accepting the tennis scholarship in Germany and he had only later found out that the other boy was also leaving Japan to study in Australia. And then today, he had presented Tezuka with this and asked that he not open it until he was on the plane. Well, he was on the plane now. Telling himself that he wasn't particularly curious or anything (he merely didn't want Fuji's surprise to come when the airplane was filled) Tezuka slowly undid the bow and lifted the lid.

The first thing he noted was that, whatever it was, it was very colourful speckled with bright shades of red, blue, yellow, orange, purple, and green. The next thing he noticed was that it wasn't one thing; it was a whole bunch of somethings. Staring down at Fuji's final farewell to him, Tezuka felt an odd twinge in his chest. The box was filled with little paper cranes of different sizes and colours, their carefully crafted perfection speaking of hours of precise, meticulous work. The cranes resembled their maker to the core, with their aura of subtle elegance, unaffected beauty and a certain intangible lure that had drawn people for millennia.

Then Tezuka saw the small, white envelope tucked into the side, almost covered over by the multitude of folded paper cranes. He gently nudged the cranes aside and pulled out the envelope. A neat, flowing _Tezuka_ was scrawled across the front. Slowly, almost reverently, he withdrew the piece of paper inside the envelope and unfolded it. Four words were written on it in the same familiar script that Tezuka had often seen in the photo albums documenting Seigaku Tennis Club's achievements.

_We will meet again._

The teen's eyes drifted back to the content of the box on his lap. The cranes lay in the box, slightly askew from the earlier jostling of their container, and Tezuka was inexplicably reminded of a deceptively innocent face with an equally deceptively sweet smile. He was certain that were he to count them, he'd find that there would be exactly one thousand of the colourful birds. And in his hand, he held the four words that Fuji had sent with them. Not a wish, but a promise. A promise for the future, for a bond that was not yet broken; a promise for _them._

On a whim, Tezuka turned his head to look at the window of the building where he'd come from. The sun's reflection prevented him from seeing any of the inside, but he fancied that he could just make out the shadow of a shorter boy behind the glass. That wasn't possible, he knew, since Fuji had most likely already boarded his plane and settling in for his journey to Australia, but for a moment, Tezuka could have sworn he saw the shadow on the floor, the eternal, familiar smile and a flash of pure blue so deep that it was perilous to look right into them lest one should drown.

--

_There are so many words left unspoken. I will hold them all within me; I won't say goodbye. And the next we meet, I will tell you everything. I will give you my heart, face to face, when the time comes. Until then, good luck and take care._

_See you later, Tezuka. _

_We will meet again._

_

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_

Because no relationship can be truly considered thus until it has endured the test of time and distance.

Comments and concrit are always much appreciated!


	2. higuma

**Tokens**

_written by: lusciniaecantus_

_Tezuka/Fuji_

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Tezuka or Fuji or Prince of Tennis.

**A/N: **I'm really not very happy with the way this one turned out. It doesn't seem to flow very well and when I read it, it seems forced. But I've had this for a week and a half and I've stared it to death and _I can't seem to make it feel right_, so I decided, what the heck, I'll just post it cuz staring at it anymore is not going to help. So here it is.

Again, thank you to all the people who read and reviewed for my last one. This time, Tezuka returns the favour (but it's technically set before **origami cranes**).

**

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**

**higuma**  
_(G)_**  
**

In their second year of high school, Fuji asks Tezuka to accompany him to the Cherry Blossom Festival.

"Nee-san is going with her fiancée and Mizuki is taking Yuuta," he explains. His smile is intact, his voice never wavers once, but Tezuka can tell he is disappointed at the fact that his siblings are going to be spending the festival apart. It is written in the way his lips are compressed just a little too tight, as though he is clamping down on his smile lest it should fall. It is written in the faintest of creases in his brow, and the stiffness of his posture.

"So, I need a date too." His head tilts slightly to the right as he waits for Tezuka to respond.

Tezuka ignores the brittle smile nailed onto Fuji's face. He ignores the mock-casual way his body is angled towards him, the way his closed eyes and light, cheerful voice are saying _I don't care._

Because Tezuka knows Fuji better than that.

Instead, he stares at the little spot just beyond Fuji's smile, and he can see past the false brightness and calm to the tension that is coiled in Fuji's clenched jaw line.

"When should I pick you up?" If it was anyone else, that would have come out as playful, nearly flirtatious, but with Tezuka, it merely a question. And the miniscule quirk tugging at his lips is most certainly just a trick of the light.

Still, he marvels at the way Fuji's smile is suddenly not quite so blinding, but transforms into something softer—realer. The straight line of Fuji's body melts into a more natural slouch as his shoulders relax.

"Six is fine," he answers in a voice that is slightly breathy with gratitude and happiness.

Tezuka acknowledges this with an inclination of his head, a faint smile on his lips despite himself. "Six then."

--

At six o'clock sharp, Tezuka shows up at the Fuji's residence. Yumiko answers the door, dressed up in a beautiful, pale pink summer kimono, clearly about to leave as well.

"Ah, Tezuka-kun," she greets him with a familiar smile, half affection, half mischief. "Syusuuke is in his room. Come in." She holds the door open as she calls upstairs for Fuji.

Tezuka murmurs his thanks, stepping inside.

"I'll be down in a minute!" Fuji's voice calls back down.

A fond look softens Yumiko's eyes and she turns to Tezuka. "Thank you for taking Syusuuke to the Festival," she tells him, her smile warm, her eyes serious. "I was worried."

"I'll take care of him." The words are out before Tezuka realizes it— an automatic response.

Yumiko knows this as well, and she laughs softly. "I know you will, Tezuka-kun." She looks back up towards the stairs. "I trust Syusuuke to you."

Not quite sure how to respond to the solemnity in her tone, Tezuka merely nods once and follows her gaze, where Fuji has emerged. His yukata is light blue, stitched with swirling white and indigo waves. Only the straight, slim line of his body prevents him from being mistakened for a young woman, and even so, Tezuka had no doubt there would be more than a few misunderstandings tonight.

"Ne, I'm leaving now, Syusuuke," Yumiko tells him.

"Bye Nee-chan."

"Have fun!" With a wink and a wave, she slips out the door and disappears into the approaching darkness.

"Gomen Tezuka." Fuji directs his eyes to the other boy, his smile apologetic as he hurries down the stairs.

"It's fine."

Fuji bends down to slip on his geta, his hair falling down to hide his smile momentarily. "Shall we go then?" Straightening, he brushes his hair out of his eyes, loops his arm through Tezuka's and tugs him out the door.

--

The Festival is bright with lights and lanterns, the shouts of vendors and excited children filling the air. In contrast to the bustling cheer of the streets, the cherry blossoms flaunt their majestic, but fleeting, beauty in a dignified silence. Their soft petals flutter through the air like spring snow to cover the ground in a carpet of palest pink.

Tezuka and Fuji walk through the busy streets, Fuji's hand gripping Tezuka's in a light, but firm hold. And Tezuka allows this because he can still sense a residue of sorrow lingering in Fuji's smile.

"Hey, young man! Want to try your skill?"

Fuji turns towards the call of the vendor, and Tezuka has no choice but to follow as the smaller boy half-drags him over. It is a game stall, where the prospect of a little stuffed toy propelled people to empty their pockets and attempt difficult, and often stacked, 'skill-testers'. Tezuka allows himself to be pulled to the stall front reluctantly, already wary of Fuji's intentions.

"Hello, little lady," the vendor greets Fuji with a wink. "Why don't you ask your boyfriend to win something for you?"

Fuji smiles sweetly at the man, and Tezuka knows better than to correct the man when Fuji was so obviously enjoying the charade. "Mitsu, will you?" he asks in soft, breathy voice.

Tezuka twitches at the abbreviation of his name, and shoots Fuji a look, to which the other responds by turning his smile up another sugary notch.

"C'mon, young man! Win your beautiful girl a cute prize!" the vendor encourages heartily.

"Please, Mitsu?"

The lanterns hanging on either side of the stall wreath soft shadows on Fuji's face and casts a warm glow about him.

Tezuka gives in. "Fine." He turns to the vendor with a curt nod. "What do I have to do?"

The man grins and holds out three balls. "If you can knock down any of the bottles, then you win a prize," he explains, pointing at the bottles lined up along the far counter. "You get three tries." He offers the balls to the bespectacled teen, who had no doubt whatsoever that the bottles were weighed down, most likely with sand.

Tezuka hands over a few coins and accepts the balls with another nod. Fuji relinquishes his hand, and stands back with a satisfied and amused smile. Suppressing his resigned sigh, Tezuka tosses the ball a few times, weighing it, before he throws it, with all the accuracy and power that is second-nature to him now, at the line of bottles. It catches one of the bottles at the very top, striking with a muffled thud, and the bottle topples over.

The vendor's eyes widen in surprise at the ease with which Tezuka knocked over the bottle. He turns to him with a wide smile. "You're very good!" he booms good-humouredly. He then gestures at the walls of stuffed toys. "Which one would you like, sir?"

Tezuka hears Fuji's muffled chuckle at the way the man addresses him and has to suppress another sigh. He eyes the prizes critically before pointing at a fluffy, brown teddy bear. "I'll take the higuma," he says. Fuji presses his sleeve to his lips and laughter trickles from behind the cotton.

"Ok!" The vendor takes the bear off the shelf and hands it to Tezuka cheerfully. "Here you go, sir! For your pretty lady friend!"

Tezuka feels his eyebrow ticking again, but he merely accepts the prize with a polite "Thank you" and turns to Fuji. "Let's go," he says and Fuji happily reclaims his arm.

The other boy's eyes nearly twinkle from under his half-closed lids as he murmurs a soft, amused, "Higuma?" before proceeding to lean over Tezuka and exclaim over how adorable the bear was.

The taller boy glances at his companion with something akin to disgruntled bemusement and hands the toy to Fuji without a word.

"Thank you, Tezuka!" Fuji chirps happily, letting go of his arm to cuddle the bear. Two elderly women sitting nearby looks up at them and begin whispering to one another with knowing smiles.

Tezuka turns away from their gazes, slightly uncomfortable. "Fuji…"

The other boy looks up from his snuggling and seems to read the discomfort in Tezuka's eyes, because he smiles reassuringly and takes Tezuka's arm again, the bear tucked between them. "Let's go look at the cherry blossoms, Tezuka!"

The two of them walk to the viewing area. The wind blows lightly, rustling the trees and making the fallen petals dance to its tune. More petals drift down slowly, wrapping the two boys in the magical world of early spring.

Fuji takes a step away from Tezuka and lifts his head to gaze up into the trees. "Saa, Tezuka?"

"Yes?" His eyes rest on Fuji's graceful, yukata-clad silhouette against the waning light.

"It's beautiful, ne?"

Brown eyes drifted upwards. "Aa."

The two boys lapse into a pensive, and comfortable silence, as the dying sunlight finally fades to leave the world bathed in a sheen of silver moonlight. Above them, the cherry blossoms sway gently in the cool, night breeze, heralding the coming of spring and the beginning of a new cycle.

(end)

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**Notes:**  
_geta_- Japanese wooden sandals. 

The Cherry Blossom Festival is a very celebrated occassion in Japan when all the cherry blossoms bloom because it marks the end of a bitter winter and the coming of spring.

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